No fatalities

26 Jul 2008: Air Tractor Inc. AT-301 — Aero Charter Express Inc — Ambia, IN

Ambia, IN, United States

On 26 Jul 2008, an Air Tractor Inc. AT-301 operated by Aero Charter Express Inc was involved in an aviation accident near Ambia, IN. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The altitude/clearance not obtained/maintained by the pilot while maneuvering over an agricultural field during an aerial application. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 12 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A pilot conducting an agricultural spraying operation impacted a field during a low-level approach. The pilot cited bright sunlight as a visibility restriction and noted an unperceived rise in the terrain.

Event Details

A pilot was conducting an aerial spraying operation over a corn field. The field was oriented east/west, and the pilot approached from the west, descending over power lines adjacent to the field. During the approach, the pilot noted that the sun was "kinda bright" and considered it a restriction to visibility.

Flight Maneuver and Impact

As the pilot initiated the roundout to level flight over the field, he noticed that the airplane continued to sink. Before he could release the spray handle and actuate the dump handle, the airplane impacted the field. The pilot stated that he "thinks" his left hand moved from the spray lever to the power lever, and then both hands moved to the control stick in an attempt to keep the wings level and avoid the airplane from nosing over.

Pilot Observations

The pilot reported that the field "appeared" to be flat, but he was later informed that the field had a "slight" rise. No other factors were described in the source.

Contributing factors

Causes

Altitude — Not attained/maintained

Other contributing factors

Contributed to outcome